"So basically, you got scammed by some shady vendor and ended up being adopted by a Wailord who thought you were its kid… right?"
After hearing Nessa finish recounting her tragic experience, Haru felt his energy drain away again.
He'd half expected her to have run into Team Rocket or some other villainous organization—but nope. Turned out it was just an accident.
And honestly, she had no one to blame but herself. Who decides to go fishing right next to their Pokémon's warm-up spot? Of course something was going to go wrong.
It was like thinking you were facing the ultimate final boss… only to realize it's just a Tauros that's lost its Magnet Pull ability.
Still, that "World Champion Trainer Tournament" she mentioned? That caught his attention.
Propping his chin in his hand, Haru gave the tanned beauty before him a curious look.
"So, about that tournament you mentioned—what are the entry requirements?"
"And what does the winner get?"
"What are you plotting?"
The moment Haru asked, Nessa's eyes sharpened like daggers.
"To join," he replied simply.
"What?"
"I mean, I'm kind of interested in the idea."
Seeing her expression twist in confusion, he quickly added, "Just, you know, sounds fun."
But that only made Nessa's face darken further.
"You're entering too?!"
As if there weren't already enough heavy hitters in the competition! If Haru joined, that was one less slot for everyone else.
Breaking into the top 32 was already brutal—why couldn't these broken-tier prodigies spare a thought for the normal trainers out there?
"Well, it sounds fun," Haru said casually. "Now that I think about it, I've never entered a big tournament like this before."
"Actually… I've never even managed to collect all the Gym Badges."
At that, his expression turned oddly self-aware.
In terms of raw power, Haru could already stand toe-to-toe with some of the weaker Champions.
But since arriving in this world, he'd never actually finished a League Challenge.
He'd gotten five badges in Paldea, sure—but the other three, plus the Elite Four? Still pending.
Maybe by the time he went back, Nemona would already be Champion.
And there was still that promise to Professor Kukui in Alola—to become the region's first official Champion.
Though who knew when the Alola League would actually be ready to launch?
He'd heard that after Lillie and Lusamine returned, they'd been helping Kukui set everything up. Trainers from across the world were flocking there, drawn by the allure of the Moon Goddess's beauty and power, ready to take part in the first-ever Alola League.
But hey, even if he hadn't finished his Gym run, at least he could join a tournament or two, right?
After all, he was planning a trip to Galar soon. Eternatus, Zacian, Zamazenta—those stories were about to kick off any day now.
Still, when he glanced back at Nessa, her face didn't look quite right.
"What's wrong? You're not still dizzy from falling in the water earlier, are you?"
"No, it's nothing…"
Hugging the pouch Haru had just handed her, Nessa shook her head slowly.
Sure, she'd been a little salty about how he'd "fished" earlier. But he wasn't a Champion—at least, not officially—so he had every right to compete.
And besides, a true Trainer doesn't back down before a match even starts.
Blaming her opponent for being stronger? That was just pathetic.
Taking a deep breath, Nessa straightened her back.
"As for rewards," she said, "there's a huge cash prize for the champion. And rumor has it the winner also gets to visit the Pokémon Breeding Center in Macro Cosmos, where they can choose one Pokémon from the rarest breeds they raise there."
"They're not necessarily the strongest—but every single one is unique and extremely valuable. That's why a lot of people are entering."
A spark of longing crossed her face.
No matter how long you've been a Trainer, the allure of rare Pokémon never fades—not even for a Gym Leader.
"As for the entry rules," she continued, "technically, anyone can apply. But if you're a Gym Leader or a member of the Elite Four, you can skip the qualifiers and go straight into the main bracket."
"Everyone else has to go through the open preliminaries. Only 128 Trainers will make it to the main stage."
"It's a point-based system—the first 128 to hit the target score advance. And like the main event, it includes both Singles and Doubles matches."
"Oh? There's Doubles too?"
That made Haru perk up.
He hadn't had a proper Doubles battle since coming to this world. Most of the time, he just let his Pokémon fight one-on-one.
But Doubles opened up a whole new layer of strategy.
Flutter Mane and Ceruledge, for example—both loved sunny weather.
Flutter Mane's abilities would spike under sunlight, while Ceruledge's Fire moves would hit even harder.
If he wanted to go all-in on that synergy, maybe it was time to find himself a Koraidon or a Groudon. Preferably Primal Groudon, the definition of absurdly overpowered.
Sure, it couldn't fly—but at that point, that flaw was as irrelevant as a Greninja worrying about second jumps.
And come on—no one beat Groudon's step count. Ever.
Koraidon was strong too, but… four times weak to Fairy? Yeah, not exactly Champion-tier durability there.
"Yep," Nessa said, nodding. "Both Singles and Doubles. Leon wants to find the Trainers with the most potential."
"He was going to make it a Tag-Team Doubles event, but, well—apparently too many Trainers didn't have… you know, friends. So he scrapped it."
"Figures," Haru muttered, pouring himself another cup of herbal tea. "The qualifiers, huh…"
128 might sound like a lot—but compared to all the Trainers in Galar and beyond, it was smaller than Lillie's hat.
And even with the point system, he'd still have to grind through a ton of matches.
Seeing him lost in thought, Nessa quickly offered, "If you want, I can talk to Leon and get you an invitation. That way you can skip the qualifiers and start in the main bracket like us."
"With your strength, I doubt he'd refuse."
Haru was about to agree—but then he hesitated, shaking his head slowly.
"Nah, that's fine. I'm pretty sure I won't have to ask—someone's bound to pull some strings for me anyway."
"Speaking of which," he added with a grin, "from what you said earlier… this tournament sounds like it's going to be rough for you, huh?"
"..."
Rough? That was an understatement. Asking her to reach the top 32 was like telling a Rattata to go slay Arceus.
If she wasn't so worried about the tournament, she wouldn't have dropped all her modeling gigs to train nonstop.
And somehow, she'd still managed to nearly drown herself in the process.
"Yeah… doesn't sound easy," Haru said with a teasing chuckle. "Your opponents are all at least Elite Four level. Even if Red doesn't show up, breaking into the top 32's gonna be tough."
"And if you don't make it, the press will eat you alive. They won't care that your opponents were monsters—they'll just see a Gym Leader getting wiped and losing her title."
Nessa's expression soured again, but Haru just smiled.
"So… need a hand?"
"What do you mean?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. I can help you make it into the top 32."
"That's impossible. You're joking, right?"
"Not necessarily," Haru said, eyes glinting. "We've got a whole month before it starts. That's plenty of time to find something… special."
"If you catch this particular Pokémon, your strength will skyrocket. Top 32 won't be out of reach."
"What Pokémon?"
She frowned.
No way he was being serious. At her level, she could handle almost any wild Pokémon—even pseudo-legendaries were manageable.
The only thing that could make such a leap in power… was a god.
"A Water- and Ice-type," Haru said quietly. "Looks a lot like Delibird. But on the level of a Legendary."
He was talking about Iron Bundle—the Paradox Pokémon sealed deep beneath Area Zero in Paldea.
Creatures on par with Ultra Beasts—near-Legendary, and far more common than true gods.
If it weren't for the containment field, those paradox Pokémon would've already spilled to the surface and caused a full-blown invasion.
Nessa's brow furrowed deeply.
"And what's the price?" she asked softly.
A Pokémon that strong couldn't come without a cost.
But Haru didn't answer directly. He just stood, leaned down close to her ear, and whispered with a sly smile—
"Take a guess~"
Then, without bothering to see how Nessa reacted, Haru turned his attention toward someone who'd been quietly sitting in the corner the whole time—Caitlin.
"Come on," he said casually. "Didn't you have something you wanted to discuss with me? Let's talk in your room. I'll leave Nessa here to change."
"Besides, I'll need her later when we go find Lugia. That big white bird doesn't have much patience."
"M–my room? That's… not a good idea."
Caitlin, who had been happily eavesdropping until now, nearly choked on her metaphorical popcorn.
What kind of cosmic joke was this? She'd been watching the drama unfold, and now suddenly she was part of it?
Absolutely not.
There were still a bunch of sketchbooks sitting on her desk—sketchbooks she'd "borrowed" from Cynthia's private collection. If Haru saw those… her reputation would be obliterated.
Especially considering that one of the main characters drawn in those steamy fancomics just so happened to be him.
"What's wrong with that?" Haru said with a grin. "Didn't I stop by your room just yesterday? Come on, let's go."
And before she could protest further, he placed a hand on her back and started gently pushing her toward the hallway.
"...The price, huh?"
Watching Haru's figure disappear through the door, Nessa let out a long, weary sigh.
Whatever that "price" was, there was no way she could afford it.
Forget catching some rare Pokémon—she didn't even know how she'd ever repay the debt of him saving her life.
Yeah… she was never paying that one off.
---
Even though Caitlin looked like she'd rather face a Gengar swarm than return to her own room, Haru's persistence eventually won out.
They stopped in front of her door, and she stood there frozen, room card trembling slightly in her hand.
To be fair, Haru hadn't originally planned on going in. But her over-the-top nervousness had made him suspicious.
If she was that desperate to keep him out, there had to be something interesting inside.
Maybe he'd find something funny… or scandalous.
Either way, the possibilities were too good to pass up.
So he waited. Patiently. Smiling.
Caitlin hesitated for what felt like ages. Just as Haru was about to lose patience, she finally swiped the card and unlocked the door.
It's fine, she told herself. Just get him to sit down right away, maybe distract him with tea or something. As long as he doesn't notice the sketchbooks, I'm safe.
Besides, they were stacked neatly and covered—no way he'd spot them unless he started poking around.
Muttering a silent prayer to Arceus, she opened the door.
And froze.
Gone.
The entire pile of sketchbooks that had been sitting on her desk was gone.
"See? There's nothing here. Why were you acting so nervous earlier?"
Haru stepped inside, taking a curious look around the room before turning that teasing gaze back to her.
"Or maybe," he said with a smirk, "you've just hidden whatever it was. Bed? Closet? Maybe under the sheets?"
***************************
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